Michelle Pfeiffer's Real Name: Michelle Marie Pfeiffer

Quick answer: Michelle Pfeiffer's real name is Michelle Marie Pfeiffer. She was born on April 29, 1958, in Santa Ana, California.

Real name and early life

Biography.com lists her full name as Michelle Marie Pfeiffer, born April 29, 1958, in Santa Ana, California. The Library of Congress name authority records Pfeiffer, Michelle, 1957- (LOC's year label differs from Biography.com's 1958; we follow Biography.com's stated birth date while noting the authority heading). After winning Miss Orange County in 1978 and briefly studying to be a court reporter, she pursued acting with early television work including Fantasy Island.

Quick facts

• Real name: Michelle Marie Pfeiffer
• Known as: Michelle Pfeiffer
• Born: April 29, 1958, in Santa Ana, California
• Known for: Actor, producer
• Notable work: Scarface, The Fabulous Baker Boys, Batman Returns, Dangerous Liaisons
• Sources checked: Biography.com, Library of Congress Name Authority

Career highlights

A lead in Grease 2 (1982) raised her profile; Scarface (1983) opposite Al Pacino became a lasting cult classic. The late 1980s brought The Witches of Eastwick (1987), Married to the Mob (1988), and an Oscar nomination for Dangerous Liaisons (1988). She won a Golden Globe and earned a best-actress Oscar nomination for The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989).

Tim Burton's Batman Returns (1992) cast her as Catwoman. Other major films include The Age of Innocence (1993), What Lies Beneath (2000), White Oleander (2002), Hairspray (2007), and Marvel appearances as Janet van Dyne. She received a Golden Globe nomination for The Wizard of Lies (2017). Married to producer David E. Kelley since 1993, she remains one of the defining screen stars of the 1980s–90s.

Name notes

Michelle Marie Pfeiffer is her birth name; the surname is commonly pronounced "FY-fer." She has not used a stage surname. Where Library of Congress year labeling disagrees with Biography.com's April 29, 1958 date, we flag the difference rather than invent a compromise. Fan sites often copy names from one another, so we checked this page against those sources.